Method of and system for controlling manufacturing processes in discrete production lines

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10185307-B2
Application number	US-201615055806-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 29, 2016
Priority date	Feb 27, 2015
Publication date	Jan 22, 2019
Grant date	Jan 22, 2019

Abstract

A method and a system control a discrete production line in a manufacturing plant employing a computer-managed MES system. The MES system contains a set of MES components interacting with one another in order to control different production phases, and the MES components use, for the control, data of MES entities stored in a database according to a first data model. The method includes: transforming data of MES entities shared among the MES components from the first data model into a second data model; providing a central cache for storing the shared data transformed into the second data model; providing a hub arranged to communicate with all MES components, the cache and the database; and during run time, making the MES components interact with one another and with the cache through the hub to control the production line.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for controlling a discrete production line in a manufacturing plant employing a computer-managed manufacturing execution system (MES system), wherein the MES system includes a set of MES components interacting with one another in order to control different production phases, and the MES components use, for the control, data of MES entities which are stored in a database according to a first data model, the method comprises the following steps of:
transforming the data of the MES entities shared among the MES components from the first data model into a second data model, wherein the second data model is a cache data model indicating a relationship between the MES entities;
providing a central cache for storing shared data transformed into the second data model;
providing a hub disposed to communicate with all the MES components, the central cache and the database; and
during run time, making the MES components interact with one another and with the central cache through the hub to control the discrete production line.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the transforming step further comprises creating in the central cache groups of the MES entities each including the MES entities used in same points of an application and at a same moment.

3. The method according to claim 2 , wherein the MES entities included into the groups include parent entities and child entities and, in the transforming step, the parent entities are included into the groups either in complete form, with all attributes, or in virtual form, without attributes.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the step of providing the central cache further comprises setting an expiration time for the MES entities stored in the central cache itself, and updating the MES entities, at an end of the expiration time, with corresponding values stored in the database.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the MES components and the hub communicate according to an event-oriented protocol including the steps of:
generating at a MES component, and sending to the hub, gesture messages representing requests for status changes in the MES components and in entities stored in the central cache;
forwarding the gesture messages from the hub to concerned MES components;
sending back, from the concerned MES components to the hub, event messages representing occurred status changes; and
bouncing the event messages from the hub to concerned MES components.

6. The method according to claim 5 , which further comprises equipping each of the MES components with an adapter disposed to translate the gesture messages and bounced event messages into a format used within the component and vice versa.

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the step of making the MES components interact with the central cache through the hub further includes operating on the central cache according to an optimistic/pessimistic read/update mechanism.

8. The method according to claim 1 , which further comprises equipping the central cache with an adapter managing all status changes in entities stored in the central cache itself.

9. A system for controlling a discrete production line in a manufacturing plant via a manufacturing execution system (hereinafter MES system), wherein the MES system containing a set of MES components interacting with one another in order to control different production phases, and the MES components use, for the control, data of MES entities which are stored in a database according to a first data model, the system comprising:
a central cache for storing the data of the MES entities shared among the MES components and organized according to a second data model, wherein the second data model is a cache data model indicating a relationship between the MES entities; and
a central hub to which all the MES components, the central cache and the database are connected, wherein the MES components are disposed to interact, at runtime, with one another and with said central cache through said central hub.

10. The system according to claim 9 , wherein, for an interaction of the MES components with one another and with said central cache through said central hub, the MES components contain means for implementing an event-oriented communication protocol based on:
gesture messages, which represent requests for status changes in the MES components and in the MES entities stored in said central cache and are sent from an originating component to said central hub and from said central hub to concerned MES components; and
field event messages, which represent occurred status changes and are sent back from a concerned MES component to said central hub and bounced from said central hub to the other concerned MES components, and said central hub having means for implementing an optimistic/pessimistic read/update mechanism in said central cache.

11. The system according to claim 9 , wherein the discrete production line is an automotive assembly line.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having computer executable instructions for performing the steps of method claim 1 .

Assignees

• Siemens Ag

Inventors

• Olmino Paolo

Classifications

• G05B19/41865

  characterised by job scheduling, process planning, material flow · CPC title

• G05B19/41845 Primary

  characterised by system universality, reconfigurability, modularity · CPC title

• Y02P90/12

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• Y02P90/20

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• Y02P90/16

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic